Meeting Priscilla
by TrillaryBanksx
Summary: Paraquel to Meeting Jupiter. I should've been made a story about the other leading lady in the first story, so here it is. This story is about how Jupiter's best friend overcame her almost fatal drug addiction, learned her own worth, and learned how to love herself and others again. Rated Mature, obviously. Hey, third time's a charm, right?
1. The Other Side, The Other Story

**So! It's been a while…like, a long while. I had another sequel-type story in the process that ultimately had to get deleted (stupid laptop with the stupid computer virus -_-), and I've been on basically a year-long hiatus. Then, the idea that I had months ago for this story popped up in my head again, and I decided to act on it. Why I haven't done a story focused on one of the other main character's in Meeting Jupiter when I first ended it, I don't know. But, all that matters is that I'm doing it now, and I hope you enjoy it as much, if not more than, I'm enjoying writing it!**

 **This is a paraquel, so it's taking place during and maybe a little after the first story, so some parts may seem like a repeat or a cross-over, because it's being told from a different perspective. I would suggest reading Meeting Jupiter to get a better idea of some things, but you really don't have to. My apologies in advance for any Italian translation that might be a little incorrect (I'm going off of the beginning Italian class I took during freshman year in college, and a little online translation as well). Priscilla's mother is from Italy so it's her native language, and naturally she taught her how to speak it as well.**

 **Since she is a recovering drug addict throughout the entire story, obviously it's going to have drug use in it. And strong language, and violence…and sexual content. The usual (haha). Now then, I hope you guys enjoy me trying this once again! Hopefully this anti-virus software will keep my laptop intact, and I'll be able to complete it.**

 **Enjoy my loves!**

 **Prologue: The Other Side, The Other Story**

"Priscilla…take off your sunglasses."

Priscilla looked at her mother with a frightened expression. She then looked back Marcus, who was staring right at her as well.

"N-No mommy, it's okay. I'll keep them on…" Priscilla said softly.

"You're inside of the house, you don't need them on." Anya said sternly. "Take them off. You know I like looking people in the eyes when I speak to them."

"Yeah Pris, take them off." Marcus said in an even tone. It was almost like he was daring her to do it.

"Really, it's okay…" Priscilla said.

"Priscilla." Jaxton's voice boomed from behind her. She turned around and looked at her step father, who looked pissed off.

"Okay…" Priscilla took off the sunglasses slowly, and Anya's face changed for the worse.

"What the HELL?!" Anya screeched, walking up to her daughter's face and grabbing her. "What happened?!"

Marcus looked at her silently, and Jaxton looked like he wanted to snap someone's neck. She didn't know who to be more afraid of.

"I fell mommy, that's all." Priscilla lied, like she always did.

"You fell until your eye and cheek turned black and blue?! That is bullshit Priscilla! Look at your neck….you can see finger marks on it!" Anya said, before whipping her head towards Marcus. "You have something to do with this?!" She asked him.

"Oh, he better not have." Jaxton said coolly.

"No. Why would you even think that? I would never hurt her." Marcus expressed angrily. He was lying as well.

"Priscilla, _lo ha fatto questo? Dire la verita!_ _(Did he do this to you? Tell the truth!)"._ Anya sneered to her.

" _Non labbio fatto_ _(He didn't do it)."_ Priscilla said back. "I promise, he didn't. I fell, I'm okay."

"I really don't want to be rude, but it's time for us to go." Marcus suddenly grabbed Priscilla's hand roughly, and pulled her away from Anya.

"You fucking bastard, I know you did this to her!" Anya lunged at him, only to be held back by Jaxton.

"Anya—" Jaxton started.

"My baby was never like this! The day she finally realizes you're not shit will be the happiest day of my life." Anya said angrily. "Get the fuck out of my house!"

Priscilla felt her heart pang with sadness when she heard those words leave her mother's mouth. She was right…it probably would be the happiest day of her life if that were to ever happen.

"Not a problem, we're leaving anyway." Marcus said evenly. "Let's go." He commanded.

Priscilla immediately followed behind him, no questions asked. Anya was crying, in disbelief with how her daughter was turning out to be. The same daughter who used to be so independent. Once they were out the house, Anya looked at Jaxton angrily.

"And you stood there and did nothing! You know for a fact he's beating on her and giving her drugs!" Anya cried out in anger.

"Anya." Jaxton's deep voice said. "I could've beaten the shit out of him…"

"Why didn't you?! I thought Priscilla was your baby girl!"

"What difference would it have made? I put him in the hospital, she would've been right by his side. It wouldn't have made a difference." Jaxton said. "For some reason, she loves him even though he don't deserve her. Until she realizes that, nothing we say or do is gonna change it."

"…..I don't know what I'll do if he does something worse…the last thing I want is a call saying she's dead…" Anya sobbed.

* * *

The car ride from Paleto Bay back into Los Santos was quiet…very, very quiet. Priscilla was shaking, partly because she was coming down from the high, and partly because she was terrified. Marcus was extremely calm after her parents pretty much told him they knew about him beating on her. He didn't react violently…yet. But she knew the second they made it back to his mother's house…Priscilla shivered with fear, because she already knew what was about to happen. The dreadful moment came, and the minute she stepped back into the house and placed her bag on the bag rack near the door, she felt her hair being yanked violently and cried out in pain. Marcus continued to drag her down the hallway to where his room was, against her protests. He walked right past his mother, who was smirking and shaking her head.

"The bitch fucked up again, didn't she?" Mrs. Sanders said gleefully. "Oh well…" She walked into her bedroom and closed the door.

Once he walked into his room, he threw Priscilla against the closet door, causing her to bang her head up against it hard.

"Your parents are really starting to irk my fucking nerve." He sneered, banging her head against the door again.

"I'm sorry! I didn't tell them anything, I swear!" Priscilla cried out. Marcus turned her around and slapped her across the face, before throwing her on his bed again.

"You made me drive you all the way the fuck out there, and then they suddenly know about what happens in private?! You're a fucking liar!" Marcus growled and he continued to punch and hit her in the face and body repeatedly.

"Please, stop!" Priscilla begged him, only to get punched again. She felt her already blackened eye closing yet again, and her mouth was already dripping with blood.

"Apologize, you worthless bitch!" Marcus demanded.

"I'm sorry!" Priscilla cried immediately.

"What was that? I couldn't quite hear you." He growled as he began choking her with one hand, while still hitting her with the other.

"I'm sorry! Please stop! I'm sorry!" Priscilla begged again.

Marcus stopped hitting her and she turned over, falling off of the bed. She began coughing violently, to the point where blood was dripping on the floor. He cracked his knuckles and walked over to her body, kicking her side and making her cry out in pain again.

"Get the fuck up. Don't think you staying here and not making me any money." Marcus spat.

"O…kay…" Priscilla breathed out in between her coughs.

He began walking out of the room. "And clean yourself up!" He said.

She stood up slowly and walked into the bathroom that was attached to his room. She didn't even recognize herself when she looked in the mirror, and began crying again. _I'm gonna die if I keep living like this….but what do I do?_ She thought as she washed her bloody and bruised face with a clean wash cloth.

* * *

 **One side of the story has been told, now it's time to explore a just as heart breaking, but equally interesting one. This is Priscilla Saretti's story.**


	2. Scum

**Chapter One: Scum**

"Hey! Get back here! Stop running now!"

Priscilla continued to run down the dark alleyway, her high heels clicking rapidly as she tried her hardest to yet again evade the police officers who were chasing her down. She knew that if they caught her again, she would really do some time. Eventually, she managed to lose them minutes later in an abandoned house, that was turned into a trap house. Once she knew that they were off her tail, she sighed heavily and made her way towards the front door. They were a few people in the house, half of them were passed out from taking drugs, and the other half was taking drugs themselves.

"On the run again, huh?" A familiar voice said behind her. She turned around and saw another woman she knew, Kayla Osman. She was known as "Basehead Kay", mainly because of the fact that she'd been on crack for years, and sold to basically everyone who wanted to smoke it as well. Unfortunately, Priscilla had been forced to buy it from her because of Marcus, to the point where he made her get addicted to it too. Speaking of that, her body was beginning to shake, which meant her high was crashing.

"You want some?" Kayla said in her raspy, hoarse voice as he held out the crack pipe. Priscilla stared at it for a few seconds, conflicting thoughts going through her head.

 _Don't take it. Don't take it,_ one set of thoughts said. Her other thoughts countered: _take it. You can't live without it. Don't even try._

She succumbed to her darker thoughts for the umpteenth time and took the pipe from Kayla's hand, smoking from it almost immediately. She felt a jolt of energy enter her body from the first pull, and it felt amazing. A few more pulls and puffs, and she felt like she was on top of the world.

It always felt like that at first.

"Do I have to pay for this?" Priscilla said, her eyes bugged and open wide. "Because I will. I have some money."

"No baby, not this time. You need it more than I do." Kayla smirked. "You should go 'head home. Don't want Steez getting antsy."

"Yeah. Right." Priscilla said quickly. She finished smoking the rest of the crack out of the pipe and handed it back to Kayla, because making her way out of the house.

The sun was rising when she arrived back at Marcus' house, and she walked in as quietly as she can. As she made her way towards his bedroom, she heard noises and stopped. After listening for a few more seconds, she knew exactly what it was, and felt a pang of hurt. She was too high to react like she wanted to, so she just placed her back against his bedroom door and closed her eyes.

 _Again….he's doing it again…._ she thought as her eyes teared up. _He's fucking another girl, even after he said he wouldn't…._

"I heard a girl in there, and knew it wasn't you." Mrs. Sander's menacing voice said from the side of her. She looked over and saw the middle-aged woman standing there with a smirk on her face. "Why you not in there? Usually your slutty ass be right along with them. You better had been making that money for my baby boy."

"I was…I just got here…"

"Are you sad?" Mrs. Sanders asked her. Priscilla said nothing, and she began laughing loudly. "Priscilla, you ain't shit to him. You ain't shit to me. You're a fucking crack headed prostitute. You fuck all different types of men on the regular and you're mad at him for having another girl in there? Pathetic." She spat out.

Priscilla was used to Mrs. Sanders dogging her out verbally, but it hurt like hell every single time. She just knew she was right. Priscilla didn't think she was shit, and she would never be shit.

"The sooner you realize you ain't shit, the easier your life will be…" Mrs. Sanders shrugged, before walking into the kitchen. "Are you gonna go and get some shit so that I can make breakfast?"

"Yes ma'am…I want to change my clothes first…" Priscilla said softly.

"Make it quick." Mrs. Sanders said, just as Marcus' door opened. He was standing there was just his boxers on.

"You back?" He said, breathing heavily.

"I have to go get breakfast…" Priscilla said, walking into the room. She glanced over at the other woman, who was getting dressed, and felt her heard sink again. The woman got dressed and gave her a disgusted look, before smirking and walking towards the door.

"That was fun,hopefully we can do it again soon." The woman said to Marcus seductively.

"You already know." Marcus smirked, before kissing her. "Let me know when you're free. Maybe it can be all three of us next time."

"Will do. Buh bye." The woman said, waving to Priscilla before smirking again, and leaving out of the room.

When she was gone, Priscilla looked at Marcus, feeling like she wanted to vomit.

"The fuck is wrong with you." Marcus asked her.

"Nothing…" Priscilla said as she walked into the bathroom, and closed the door.

She thought he was going to force himself into the shower with her like he almost always did, but he didn't. She used that small alone time to cry, like she always did. She felt trapped, like there was no way she could escape the horrible life she was living. She knew that she couldn't look her mother and step father in the eye, and knew that they were ashamed of her, which is why she hadn't spoken to them in months. She was degrading herself to please a man who didn't even want her, and cheated on her 24/7, and continuously abused her: mentally, physically and sexually. She was hooked on a drug that was killing her slowly…she felt like dying. Like everyone would feel better if she were dead and gone.

"Priscilla! Hurry the fuck up so that Momma can make breakfast!" She heard Marcus' voice yell out.

"O-Okay!" Priscilla said back.

* * *

"Pris!"

Priscilla turned around from the group of women she was talking to, noticing the woman that stood a few feet away from her on the curb. _She looks familiar…_ she thought as she tried to figure out who it was. Finally, it came to her who the woman was, which made her even more confused.

"Jupiter?" She whispered. "What are you doing here? You shouldn't be here right now."

"I should ask you that. What the hell are you doing here?" Jupiter asked her.

She looked at the bubbly, sweet woman she had met a month prior in disbelief. _Why is she here? She needs to leave! The last thing I need is Steez seeing this…_

"My job…I'm a good for nothing crack whore. So I do what I do best: sell my assets." Priscilla spat out truthfully.

Jupiter shook her head and took a step closer to her. "No you're not. You don't belong here, this isn't you."

This made Priscilla angry. Who the fuck was she to pretend like she knew her? _She doesn't know me! At all!_ Priscilla thought.

"How do you know?!" Priscilla raised her voice slightly. "You only met me for a day, and now you suddenly know all about me?!"

"Look, I may not know you too well, but I know for a fact this isn't you. What happened to the fun-loving girl I met last month at the bus stop?"

"She's gone!" Priscilla was now enraged at this girl. _What is it with her? Why won't she leave me alone?!_ "My so called loving, gang banging, crack slinging boyfriend told me that if I don't continue making his money by being on the corner, he'd kill me himself. Some fucking sweetheart huh?" She then spat out.

Jupiter shook her head again slowly and walked even closer to her. Priscilla was about to snap on her again when she felt Jupiter pull her towards her, into a tight hug. Her eyes widened, even though she just stood there. That hug, it felt….warm. Genuine. She hadn't received a hug like that in a very long time, and it caught her by complete surprise. She tried to keep it together…she tried to convince herself to push Jupiter away, but she ultimately couldn't. Finally, Priscilla lifted her arms slowly and hugged Jupiter back, feeling herself break down into tears.

"You can stay with me…" Jupiter told her, while rubbing her back soothingly.

"Please…help me…." Priscilla managed to get out in between her sobs.

"You're getting out of here, Pris. Come on." Jupiter said.

She started to move, but stopped when she remember one crucial point.

"Wait, what if Steez—" She started.

"Steez can suck a dick. I'm not scared of him, and I got a nice pair of brass knuckles with his name on it if he wants to approach me sideways. Let's go, we're going to my apartment."Jupiter said, before taking her hand and leading her to the car she had just came out of.

* * *

 **Oh, if ya'll thought this chapter made you guys hate Steez and his mother (trust me, I hated them while I was typing this lol)...you ain't see nothing yet. As the story goes on, you'll see just how evil both of them really are, especially when he finds out how close she gets with Lamar. Anyway, I hope you guys like it! There is more coming soon :)**


	3. Mutual

**Chapter Two: Mutual**

"Pris are you sure you're gonna be okay while I go to the Pier? You know I can stay here with you if you want me to. I don't mind." Jupiter said as she searched her door for her apartment key.

Priscilla waved her hand. "Nah, I'll be fine. Besides I won't be alone, isn't one of Franklin's friends supposed to be coming over too?"

"Yeah, his name is Lamar."

"Lamar...that's a cute name. Is he cute?" Priscilla asked slyly.

"Yeah, he's a nice looking guy. And he's funny too, I think you'll like him." Jupiter answered. She finally found the key and stuck it in her purse. "I'll be back later, okay? You already know the deal, make yourself at home."

"Okay, have fun...and don't rush to come back tonight." Priscilla winked.

Jupiter laughed and opened her apartment door, just as Lamar turned the corner in the hallway of her floor.

"The door's already open, so just go in." She told him and he nodded. He was getting ready to walk pass her when she stopped him. "You okay with keeping Pris company tonight?"

"Yeah, I ain't got nothing else to do anyway." Lamar answered. "Is she cute?"

"Go and see for yourself." Jupiter smirked as she made her way to the elevator. "See ya'll later!"

Lamar rolled his eyes playfully and walked to her apartment door, taking a second to make sure he looked decent, before opening the door. When he walked inside and closed the door behind him, he locked it and made his way into the living room. No one was in there, but the television was still on. A couple of seconds later, the sound of the toilet flushing in the bathroom was heard, followed by the sound of running sink water. That sound ended and the door opened, and Priscilla walked out of the bathroom. She went into the living room and stopped, just as Lamar turned around and saw her staring at him.

"Are you my baby sitter for the night?" She joked and smiled at him, causing him to smirk right back at her.

"If that's what you wanna call it." He answered.

She held her hand out to him. "I'm Priscilla."

"Lamar." He said, shaking her hand back.

"You want something to drink, I was about to make something."

"Eh...yeah. I do."

Priscilla nodded and made her way to Jupiter's kitchen, as Lamar watched her silently. She definitely wasn't the type of girls he was used to talking to or messing with, but that definitely wasn't a bad thing. She was different, but he still thought she was good looking. He also thought the Monroe piercing she had above her lip was a bonus to her already cute face...all of these things he thought of just by looking at her for two minutes. Yeah, this is what Lamar did on a regular basis when it came to females.

Priscilla came back soon after with two glasses, a bottle of vodka, cranberry juice, and a bottle of Moscato.

"I dunno how you like your alcohol so I'mma let you pour it yourself." She said, handing the vodka and cranberry juice to him before sitting down on the couch.

He sat down on the couch and began pouring his drink, just as she began pouring wine in her own cup.

"You sure you don't want any?" He asked her.

Priscilla shook her head, "I'm kind of trying to lay off the hard alcohol for awhile."

"You are a good one." Lamar said, drinking a little bit out of his cup. "The burning in my chest is what keeps me going every night."

"You drink every night?!"

"Nah." Lamar laughed. "The way I drink, I don't think I would survive if I did it every night..."

Priscilla laughed as well, just as her stomach began feeling weird. Oh no...this is exactly how I felt when I first met Marcus...she thought as she took another long sip of her Moscato.

"How long you been cool with J?" Lamar asked her.

"Not that long, like a little over a month...I met her when she first moved here." She answered.

"She met a lot of people on her first couple of nights here. You, Franklin..."

"He's seems like a nice guy. How long you've known him?"

"My whole life, unfortunately." Lamar said, making a face. "We grew up in the same neighborhood."

Priscilla giggled and said, "Why you said unfortunately?"

"Because he's a bitch." Lamar said.

"Okay, and why do you think he's a bitch?"

"Because it's clear as day that he has feelings for her."

"For...Jupiter?"

Lamar nodded and took another drink. "Yeah. I mean she's not ugly, and she's disgustingly sweet to him."

"She's disgustingly sweet to everybody." Priscilla said.

"True." Lamar smirked.

"But I think they'll confess how they really feel eventually...maybe even tonight?"

"I hope so, I'm tired of him acting like a lil bitch." Lamar joked. "But, since we're gonna here be with each other for a while, I want to make it worth it."

"Okay, and how do you think we should do that?"

"I'm just gonna come right out and say it, because I'm never good at holding my tongue." He started. "I think you're gorgeous, and I definitely want to get to know you more."

Priscilla dropped her mouth with surprise. Her stomach started filling with butterflies again, and she tried to suppress it by drinking more wine.

"Wow, that was..." She started.

"Blunt." He ended. "I know, I can't help it. Especially when I'm near a pretty girl."

"But thank you, it feels nice to hear someone say something like that, after you've heard the opposite for so long..."

"Who lied and said you were ugly?" He asked.

"My...I guess he's my ex now." She answered. She saw the look on Lamar's face and smiled. "He's irrelevant now, I really want nothing to do with him. Besides, it's a long story..."

"We got all night, so you might as well start spilling the beans." He said.

Priscilla looked right at him. "Are you trying to weaken my guard so you can sleep with me?"

Lamar laughed and shook his head, "Trust me Priscilla, if I really wanted to sleep with you...honestly I wouldn't mind, but if that was my actual goal, you'd be laying back on this couch as we speak."

Priscilla raised her eyebrow and smirked. "Oh really? You think you could get me that easily?"

"Oh I know I can." Lamar smirked back.

"And how's that?"

"Because if you didn't think I was attractive, you wouldn't be flirting with me right now."

This guy...why am I sitting here letting him be cocky like this? If it was anyone else I would've cursed them out and flicked them off, she thought. But there's something about him that's making me not even care...

"You're pretty confident in your abilities aren't you?" She asked him.

"Something like that." He answered. "Like I said my intentions is not to have sex with you, at least not tonight. I just wanna get to know you."

"Okay..."

"So, you gonna tell me about this blind asshole who thinks you're ugly?"

She poured herself another glass of wine and slowly nodded her head. "Yeah...his name is Marcus, but he forced me to call him by his 'street' name, Steez."

Lamar made another face. "Steez?"

"Yeah...wait, do you know him?"

"He's a fucking punk...he had somebody like you by his side? And he fucked it up?"

"I can't only blame him...I blame myself for our falling out too."

"Why?"

"I let him continuously put his hands on me and call me out my name...and I let him get me hooked on drugs too..."

"You didn't let him do anything." Lamar said seriously. "Only a weak ass man puts his hands on a defenseless woman. And you can get help with your drug addiction if you really want to recover from it."

"I want to...it's destroying me. I have no money, no place to stay...Jupiter's letting me stay with her, but I really don't want be a burden on her."

Lamar was genuinely feeling bad that he had basically forced her to tell him about her ex boyfriend, he had no idea that she was actually going through a lot of shit with that dude, and with herself. He felt...obligated. Like he couldn't just walk away from her and call it a day.

"I'm sure you wont be a burden on her." He said as he looked into her eyes. Seeing those green eyes up close made him realize just how pretty she really was. "And if you need someone to talk to or to help out, I'll be here."

"Really?" She said, and he nodded. "Thanks Lamar...you may be a cocky son of a bitch, but I like you."

"I'll take that as a compliment." He laughed.

The night went by, and they had spent it getting to know each other more and joking around. Lamar had ordered pizza for them and they ate it while they continued to watch movies. Eventually, all of the wine Priscilla had drunk combined with the pizza got to her, and she felt herself nodding off to sleep. She put her legs across the couch and unknowingly laid her head on Lamar's lap, falling into a peaceful sleep. He looked down and watched as she breathed evenly, not even bothering to move her from that position. Just as he put his head back on the couch and closed his eyes, he began to fall asleep himself.


	4. From The Beginning, Again

**Chapter Three: From The Beginning, Again**

 ** _"Are you sure you want to do this, Priscilla? Your life will never be the same after today."_**

 ** _"Yes…I want to do this."_**

* * *

 **2 Days Later**

It was approximately a two and a half hour bus ride from the city to Paleto Bay, and Priscilla used half of that time to deeply think about what had happened to her in the last three days. It was hectic, unbelievable….terrifying. She had shot the man that she had once loved after finding out he sold the only keepsake she had of her biological father: a necklace he had gave to her years ago, before he passed away. The necklace was technically worth a lot of money, but it was priceless to her. She had already decided to leave Marcus alone when Jupiter told her she could stay with her for the time being, until she got on her own feet. But there was a creeping feeling of her wanting to go back to Marcus and possibly try it again.

The feeling suddenly began to go away, slowly, when she was introduced to Lamar, who was a friend of Jupiter's. He was kind, not to mention good looking, and he made her laugh basically the entire time they were together. A little on the cocky and reckless side, but she didn't care, because he genuinely made her smile. Hours after meeting him, she found out about the necklace and finally snapped, prompting her to shoot her ex-boyfriend in the arm.

Priscilla knew for a fact he was locked up now, and she secretly wished that she had killed him. Rage still sat in her heart for him, but she was ultimately heartbroken. Three years of being together and it ended in such a horrible way. But it had to end, and she was happy that it did.

 _It's been almost a year since I've seen them, let alone spoke to them…_ Priscilla thought as the bus pulled up to the stop in Paleto Bay. _Who knows if they even want to see my face again….but I feel like mommy and Jax should know…_

20 minutes later, the cab that she was riding in pulled up in the driveway of her parents' house. She paid the driver and thanked him before getting out, and walking up the porch steps. She stopped in front of the door and rang the doorbell, holding her breath. A few seconds later, the door opened slowly, and Anya stood there. She was very surprised to say the least.

"Priscilla…" Anya breathed out, her eyes suddenly tearing up.

"H-Hi mommy…" Priscilla said softly. "Is it okay that I come inside?"

"Yes, of course!" Anya opened the door wider, and Priscilla walked inside.

Anya closed the door behind her and locked it, before turning around towards Priscilla. She took a few steps closer to her and hugged her, causing Priscilla to immediately hug her back.

"Mommy… _mi dipiace_ _(I'm sorry)_ …." Priscilla cried.

"No no, baby. It's okay….it's alright…" Anya said as she rocked her daughter back and forth soothingly.

Priscilla continued to cry in her mother's arms, letting out all of the tears she had held in since her former relationship began going downhill in the first place. She tried to stop and control herself, but couldn't. It felt so nice to have her mother hug her like she always used to do. She had missed it so much.

"I do not want you going back there, you understand me, Priscilla?" Anya told her once she broke away. Priscilla still had tears flowing down, and Anya wiped them away. "Look at you….he's turned you into someone I've never seen before. You're so sick, baby…"

"I know…" Priscilla said hoarsely.

"He's a monster. And what's worse is that he was in sheep's clothing. I do not want you going back to him at all." Anya said sternly.

"He's in jail…"

"What?"

"They locked him up. The police was called on us and they found cocaine in his truck…I don't know how long he's going away for, but he's gone." Priscilla said.

"Good." Anya nodded her head. "Do you have somewhere to stay, baby? You are more than welcome to stay here, you know that."

"I know that." Priscilla smiled weakly. "But that's the reason I came here….I'm leaving, mommy."

"Where are you going?" Anya asked with surprise.

"To get help for my addiction…Coastal Gardens."

"The rehab center in San Fierro? I've heard many, many good things about that place baby." Anya smiled back and grabbed her daughter's cheeks. "I'm so proud of you, baby. When are you leaving?"

"Tomorrow afternoon…I'm going to do this. I'm going to get clean, and make you and Jax proud. _Prometto_ _(I promise)_."

"I know you will, but making me and your step dad proud should be the last thing on your mind. You need to do this for yourself. You deserve so much better baby, and I guarantee you're gonna find it." Anya said.

Marcus and his mother's constant reminders to her that she wasn't anything above dirt in the ground played in her head, which made her not really believe her mom telling her that she was the exact opposite.

"I've been told I wasn't shit for so long…I actually believe it now…" Priscilla said sadly.

"That is not true. You're special, Priscilla. You're smart, beautiful….this place will make you realize your self-worth again." Anya said. She noticed Priscilla's bare neck and spoke on it. "Allen's necklace….do you still have it? I remember you never taking it off…"

Priscilla's face changed for the worse and she looked away, "He sold it without me knowing about it…that's why I shot him…"

" _Che?!(What?!)_ " Anya gasped. "That rat bastard….he will rot in hell for all of the wrong things he has done…I can't believe it…"

"It's okay….I'm working with someone in the FIB…I was referred to him by a friend." Priscilla said. "He's helping me go into the rehab center…once I finish this program, hopefully I'll have myself together…I just wanted to come by and tell you goodbye."

Anya smiled and pulled Priscilla towards her again, giving her another warm hug. She was so happy, she couldn't even put the words together to describe it out loud. _Finally…._ she thought _. She's finally realizing that she deserves so much better…_

"CiCi?" A little voice squeaked, causing both of them to turn around. At the end of the steps stood Priscilla's younger half-brother (Jaxton and Anya's only child together), Rocko. It had been so long since she had seen her four year old brother, and she missed him so much. Priscilla was ecstatic when Anya told her almost 5 years prior that she was pregnant with her second child, and because of her age, Rocko was considered a healthy miracle baby.

"Hi, Rock!" Priscilla said happily, holding her arms out. Rocko ran over to her instantly and Priscilla picked him up, giving him kisses all over his cheeks.

"I missed you." Rocko squeaked as he hugged her tight.

"I missed you too, baby…I'm so sorry. All of those times I pushed you away and yelled at you, and let Marcus hit you…I'm sorry, Rocko." Priscilla told him.

"It's okay….mommy is CiCi staying with us today?" Rocko asked Anya.

"I'm afraid not, baby. She's going to be going away again for a little while so that she can get help…she came to say goodbye." Anya answered.

"Oh…okay. Will you come back and see us again?" Rocko asked.

"I promise, I will Rock." Priscilla kissed his cheek again. "But I gotta do this…I want to be a better person, and a better big sis."

"I love you, Priscilla. I know you can do this…" Anya said softly, smiling.

"I love you too, mommy. Thank you for always believing in me. When Jax comes back, please tell him I love him too, and I'm sorry for putting him through so much. I know there were plenty of times he wanted to break Marcus' neck and didn't because of me." Priscilla said back, grinning. "The next time you see me, I'll definitely be different. I promise."

"I know you will, baby….I know you will."

* * *

"This is it, Priscilla….you ready?"

Priscilla looked at Jupiter for a few seconds, before looking at the line of people who were boarding the plane in front of her.

"I'm…I'm ready." Priscilla breathed out. Jupiter smiled and hugged her for the second time that day.

"You're gonna do great, boo. Whenever you feel like you want to give up…call me. I'll make you think otherwise." Jupiter smirked.

"Right, will do. Thanks for everything." Priscilla smiled. She broke away and gave Franklin a hug too, thanking him as well. Finally, she walked over to Lamar, who looked pretty sad, and smiled sweetly at him. "You've been so nice to me…thanks you cocky ass bastard. I'll be back to visit soon." She grinned.

He smirked back and gave her a hug, "I'll visit you before then." He told her.

"But it's over three hours away. I don't want you wasting time and gas doing that." She told him.

"Trust me, it won't be a waste. I promise, I'll visit you soon."

Her heart fluttered as she hugged him for a few more seconds, before breaking away. She looked back at her friends and waved goodbye one more time, before making her way inside of the plane. _Alright…here I go. I can do this…_

* * *

 **And so, the recovering process begins! Hope you guys enjoyed it, I'll be updating soon! :)**


	5. Release

**Chapter Four: Release**

It was her only second night at the rehab center, and her very first night of bad withdrawals. It was probably the worst thing she had ever felt in her entire life.

Priscilla couldn't sleep. The constant tossing and turning, her body going from feeling extremely hot, to shivering cold in a matter of minutes. She cried for the entire night, wishing and praying that it would all just go away. She found herself feigning for drugs…something, anything, to make the nauseating feeling go away. After tossing and turning for hours, she realized that it was almost six in the morning, and she literally was only able to get an hour's worth of sleep. Priscilla got out of her bed slowly and trudged to the bathroom, still holding her arms across her chest, shivering.

She looked like she hadn't slept in days. Her eyes were red and puffy from the lack of sleep, and crying the night away. After washing her face and brushing her teeth, she sat back at her desk again. It was empty, but she had pieces of computer paper in one of the drawers, so she took out two pieces. She grabbed one of the pencils in the cup holder and began scribbling away furiously. There was nothing else to do, so she decided to just draw how she was feeling. In a way, it felt good to be able to draw again, especially after Marcus basically bashed her for it for so long, claiming that artists will never amount of shit, and that it was a shitty quality to have. It made her eventually stop drawing and painting like she had been doing for basically her entire life. The picture was pretty dark to say the least, since it was going off of her emotions at the moment, but it was still amazing nonetheless.

Minutes later, her drawing was finished and she took a push pin, hanging it up on the bulletin board above her bed. _What to do now…_ she thought as she looked out her window at the beautiful view outside. Without thinking, she picked up her phone and dialed a number slowly. After four rings, the other line finally picked up.

"Hello?" The familiar deep male voice said sleepily.

"Lamar…" Priscilla said softly. "I'm sorry, d-did I wake you up?"

"Yeah." He answered bluntly. She heard something move in the background and assumed he was getting out of bed. "But it's aight, my alarm was supposed to go off in like 5 minutes."

"Oh…."

"What's wrong."

"I…don't know…" She stuttered. "I couldn't sleep.."

"Withdrawals." He said lowly.

 _How did he know?_ She thought in surprise. "Y-Yeah. It's only been two days…I don't know if—"

"It's definitely gonna be tough for a while." He cut her off. "But you can do it, Priscilla. Whatever you do, don't leave. Not yet."

"That's the thing, I don't think I can…"

"I promise you, you can. You're gonna feel better when you see the progress you're making. Just stick it out…you know what J told you, every time you feel like you're about to quit, call her. You can keep calling me like this too, I don't mind."

Priscilla smiled for the first time that morning, and closed her eyes. "Right. I will…I don't wanna keep you up, so I'll talk to you later."

"Mhmm. See you soon, Pris." He said back.

She hung up the phone and felt better, laying back down in her bed. The dining hall didn't open until 8 o'clock for breakfast, and her first group meeting for the day wasn't until 10. _I still have some time…maybe I can get a little more rest…_

* * *

"I'm so glad everyone is here bright and on time today. It's gonna be a little different…we're still gonna have a group discussion, but I want us to do our first group activity as well."

Priscilla continued to half-listen to one of the center's instructors, Michelle Harrison, explain what they were doing today. Her mind was elsewhere, and she continued to change her look from down at her fingers, to out of the window. She was so out of it that she didn't even hear the instructor calling her name.

"Miss Saretti? Hello?"

Priscilla finally snapped out of it and looked at her. "Yes?"

"Seems as though you're a little out of it this morning. Are you okay?"

"Y-Yes. I'm fine…just had a little trouble sleeping…" Priscilla answered.

"Hopefully, this activity will wake you up a little bit more." Michelle said, smiling sweetly.

 _Doubt it._ Priscilla thought halfheartedly, even though she smiled in return. Michelle continued to describe what their discussion that day was going to be about: strength. Great. Strength was something she definitely didn't have, physically and mentally. But she tried to stay positive about it.

"We'll start with Delilah, and make our way around the circle." Michelle said, looking at the middle-aged woman to her left.

"O-Okay…" Delilah said softly.

"It's okay, I'm not going to chew you out or anything….what do you think strength is?" Michelle asked.

"Having courage….being able to get back up after you've been knocked down for so long, so much." Delilah said. Priscilla, along with the other five people in the circle, nodded in agreement.

"Very good answer. Do you think you have strength, Delilah?"

"I think I'm getting it back…for awhile, I didn't."

"Great. This activity we're gonna do today, and the rest of the activities we do for the remainder of this program will help all of you gain that strength that you lost while doing the drugs that you did." Michelle said.

She continued to go around the circle, asking varieties of strength-based questions to each person. When she got to Priscilla, Priscilla hesitated at first.

"Do you feel like you're strong now, Priscilla?" Michelle asked her.

Priscilla stared at her for a few seconds, before shaking her head slowly. "No…" She answered truthfully.

"And why is that?"

"…..I'm not sure. The things that I did…the things I let happen to me…I'm not strong at all." Priscilla said.

"Do you feel like you will eventually become strong again?"

"I want to…but I don't know…"

Michelle continued the discussion, and Priscilla felt like she wanted to leave. She hated being put on the spot, but she knew that she had to stay there. She was uninterested, and counting down the minutes until the discussion was over, so that they could do the stupid activity and she could go back to her room.

Eleven o'clock rolled around, and the small group of adults made their way out of the main building where the discussions were held in. Priscilla was one of the last ones to walk out, and she was stopped by someone. It was another woman who was in their group, Tamara Fisher. Priscilla remembered her saying that she was 25 years old during their first meeting the day before, which meant she was only two years older than her.

"Hey." Tamara said to her as they continued walking.

"Hi…what's up?" Priscilla said, in her usual friendly demeanor.

"I wonder how long we gotta keep doing these boring ass discussions." Tamara said, rolling her eyes playfully.

Priscilla giggled and shook her head, "13 more months and we'll be free…but it is sort of helpful.."

"Eh, I guess…I kinda came in this because I was forced, but I realized that I really need this." Tamara shrugged.

"I wasn't forced, but I realized I needed this too…" Priscilla said.

"Alright you two, come over here!" Michelle's voice called out to them. They walked over to the clearing where everyone else was standing, and Priscilla noticed there were three cars on the grass. They were pretty run down and didn't even have wheels, but it made her wonder what the hell this activity was going to be about anyway.

"Now, I know ya'll are wondering what the hell is going on, so I'll tell you. Our first activity is going to start off strong, literally. It's really simple, you all are gonna take one of these items—" She pointed to the pile of random objects which included bats, pipes and even a sledgehammer. "—and take all of your frustrations out on those cars for a few seconds. It may seem a little weird, but it is a stress reliever, and I promise you will be better, and ready for the journey that we are all going on." Michelle clapped her hands together excitedly. "You can scream, yell, cry…hell, you can even curse, I'll allow it. Get your frustration and anger out. Now let's see who can go first…hm, Priscilla?"

Priscilla looked at her with surprise. "Y-Yes?"

"Would you like to kick this activity off?"

 _No._ she thought. "Oh…okay…" She said out loud.

She walked up to the pile of objects and picked up a lead pipe slowly.

"I want you to think about everything….any heartache, sadness….fright…anger." Michelle told her. "Think of everything you had to deal with and go through while you were on drugs…the people who did you wrong…" Priscilla closed her eyes and almost immediately, memories of what she was going through for the past three years resurfaced her mind. It was painful, and she found herself shaking with anger and sadness.

"Let all of that frustration you're feeling out, Priscilla." Michelle said softly, touching her shoulder.

Priscilla opened her eyes, growled and swung the pipe at the front hood of the car that was in front of her. She swung continuously, shrieking and cursing out loud. The front windshield cracked as she continued to hit it, and she pictured Marcus' smug, disgusting face, and how he broke her down over their three year relationship, how he basically destroyed her. His mother's menacing demeanor, and how instead of her scolding her son for treating a woman with ultimate disrespect, she encouraged it, even beating on Priscilla a few times with him _. That fucking bastard, and his fucking rat ass weak excuse of a mother…_ she thought angrily as she busted the driver's side window of the car with the pipe. She swung the pipe at the car for a few more seconds until Michelle yelled, "Time!", signaling her to stop.

She was still shaking, and tears were still falling from her eyes. Everyone looked at her with surprise, but she didn't feel any negativity coming from them.

"How do you feel?" Michelle asked her.

"…Great." Priscilla said hoarsely, and truthfully.

And _damn_ , did she feel great.


	6. Visiting Hours

**It feels like it's been forever! Probably because it has lol. Thanks to everyone who's taking the time out to actually read this story. It is FAR from over, trust me. I'm basically finished writing all of my ideas down for each chapter, now I have to just organize it and post it. So with that being said, two more chapters are here! Hope you like :)**

* * *

 **Chapter Five: Visiting Hours**

 _2.5 Months Later_

 **Almost three months of sobriety. I feel…different. My withdrawals are going away slowly, but I still get them pretty bad. I gained five pounds…I don't really see it, I'm still skinny as fuck. But, I will say that 90% of the time, I feel way better than I ever did when I got high….I'm going to stick this out. I'm going to do it...**

"Hey Priscilla, you tryna come with us to the movies? It's the only time they lets us off this boring ass campus." Delilah asked her, smirking.

Priscilla grinned, "Nah, I think I'm gonna relax in my room, Dee." She answered.

"Awww, seriously? We're going to see that Chocolate City movie." Tamara said, wiggling her eyebrows. "This is the only theater in San Fierro that's showing it."

"Oh, so you know it's gonna be packed." Priscilla joked. "All of ya'll thirsty ass females going to see a movie about male strippers."

"Hey!" Iris, another recovering addict that was staying there called out. "You…are absolutely correct." She finished.

Delilah and Tamara laughed loudly, "We can help it if we like sexy ass men." They both said simultaneously.

"Uh huh. Ya'll have fun, and let me know if the movie is worth seeing." Priscilla smirked, before turning to walk away.

"Oh, we will. Don't worry! Bye, Pris!" Everyone else said back.

Priscilla knew that she was one of the only, if not the only, ones on campus at that moment. Some of the people in the program with her (there were only 20 people staying on campus in total) had went home for the weekend, and others had gone out to spend the day doing activities around the city (like Tamara, Delilah and Iris were doing). It was always pretty quiet outside, but this time she could really tell that no one was really here. She made her way back into the residential hall were her bedroom was located, and waved to the hall supervisor, Samuel. After talking with him for a few minutes, she then made her way back to her bedroom.

She was exhausted from working out and doing her laundry, but she was far from tired. They weren't allowed to have televisions in their room at the moment, so she pulled up Netflix on her cell phone and began watching Orange Is The New Black, a series that she had recently gotten really into. Her room phone suddenly began ringing and she paused the show, walking over to it.

"Hello?" She answered.

"I'm sorry to interrupt you Pris, but it looks like you have a visitor here." Samuel's voice said on the other line.

 _A visitor? What the hell? I'm not expecting anybody….right?_ she thought. "Uh…okay. I guess you can send them to my room?"

"Alrighty, will do. Bye." Samuel said, before hanging up the phone.

"Who the hell found out where I was staying…" She thought as she walked up to the door.

Without looking through her peephole, she unlocked it and opened it slowly, jumping back almost immediately with surprise. Lamar was standing there, with his hand up like he was about to knock on the door. He put his hand down and looked at her, smiling crookedly. She felt hot, and she just knew she was blushing red. _Speaking of chocolate city…_

"Told you I was coming to visit you soon, didn't I?" He smirked. The look on her face was priceless.

Her surprised expression turned into a warm smile, and she pulled him into a hug. "You really came out here to see me…I don't believe it…" She breathed out.

"You thought I was lying?"

"No…but I know Jupiter hasn't been able to come because of her classes…and she has her own shit that she's dealing with."

"What could she possible be dealing with? Her overly sweet and kind ass." Lamar joked. _If only he knew…_

Priscilla smiled and shook her head, "That is confidential, sorry." She told him, before letting him into her room.

"God damn, you sure this is a rehab center and not a hotel?" He said loudly, making her laugh again.

"It's nice, right?" She asked.

"Is it? I pulled up in this shit and thought I had the wrong address…that dude at the front desk assured me that I was in the right place."

"Assured you?" Priscilla said, sitting on her bed. She patted the space next to her and he sat down as well.

"Yes, assured me. Why you said it like that?" He asked.

"No reason, I'm just used to you speaking slang usually…kinda weird hearing you talk more mature-like." She said.

"Oh damn, I think you just told me I usually talk like I'm stupid." He said, feigning sadness.

"N-No!" Priscilla immediately regretted how it came out, because she really didn't mean it like that. "I swear, I didn't mean it like that Lamar."

He looked at her for a second, before laughing loudly and shaking his head, "I'm kidding, Pris. I knew what you meant…I can turn my shit on and off like a filter. You can't get jobs speaking like you ain't pass the fifth grade."

Priscilla smirked and nodded her head in agreement, "You're right. So not only are you a cocky ass bastard, now you're a smart ass, cocky ass bastard. Very good combination." She joked.

"Ha-fucking-ha." He said sarcastically. He glanced over at the drawings above her desk and stood back up, walking over to them. "Did you do these drawings?" He asked in surprise.

"Y-Yeah….they're bad, I know." She trailed off.

"Uh, hell no they ain't…" He picked up the first drawing she did while she was there, on the second night/third morning. It was pretty dark indeed, and he could tell that she was probably in a negative mood when she drew it, but it was still really good. "You got some serious talent, Priscilla." He then said.

Her heart skipped a beat when he said that. _Does he really mean it?_

"You…you mean it?" She said softly.

"Mhmm. These are dope…." He picked up another drawing that was on her desk, and noticed that it was a little boy. "Is this based off of somebody?"

"Huh? Uh…" She walked closer to see which drawing he was referring to, and smiled. "Yeah, that's my brother."

"Brother?! How old is he?"

"Four. His name is Rocko…he's the family's little miracle baby." Priscilla said.

"Why's that."

"Well my mom was well over the average age of a woman who gets pregnant when she was pregnant with him…her doctor told her either the pregnancy would go really well, or really bad. Thankfully, she ain't have any complications, and he arrived a happy, healthy baby." Priscilla explained.

"Ah….you gonna let me meet him, right? And your moms and step pops too?" Lamar asked.

"Do you want to?"

"Wait…you said he's in the military, right?" He asked cautiously.

"Yeah, the Army."

He made a disdained face, causing her to laugh out loud.

"You know what…I'll do it. I don't mind…if I don't survive the meeting, please keep me in your spirits." He joked.

"Will do." She joked back. She looked at the picture she had drew of Rocko and her heart became a little heavy. "If there is one person I definitely miss back home, it's him…"

"Awww."

She rolled her eyes playfully and continued, "I've been such a horrible big sister for a while…"

"What makes you say that?"

" I always yelled at him…always pushed him away. I even stood there and let Marcus hit him…he would go and cry to my mom, who would yell and argue with Marcus in response to it. The drugs made me antsy, and I ain't want nobody touching me…Rocko is very affectionate and he'll hug you every chance he gets." She said softly. "I feel so bad for doing that do him, especially because he would run right back to me and want me to hug him..."

"It's not your fault…"

"Are you sure? Because you're not supposed to let anyone hurt your siblings…"

"You weren't in the right state of mind, Pris. If Rocko can forgive you and still love you the same, then you shouldn't dwell on that shit."

She looked at him, feeling the same butterflies in her stomach that she had been feeling for the past three months whenever they spoke to each other. On one hand, she liked the feeling. On the other hand, it terrified her. The last thing she wanted was a repeat of what she is trying to cope with, and recover from now.

"I meant to ask you something…" Lamar started up, breaking her out of her trance.

"Hm?"

"What are your living arrangements when you leave here?"

"Um…I'm not sure…I asked the head administrator of the center to help me look for something back in the city. I don't wanna be a burden on Jupiter…so if I could find something, even if it's a rinky dink studio apartment, that'll last me until I get a decent job, I'll be okay…"

Lamar nodded, even though he didn't like that answer. _She don't deserve to be in no busted ass studio…that's not gonna happen,_ he thought.

"When is visiting hours over, do you know?" He asked her.

"It's Sunday, so I think it's 8 o'clock." She answered.

"Good, that means I got about three more hours to bother your ass." He said, smiling goofily.


	7. My Bestest Friend

**Chapter Six: My Bestest Friend**

Priscilla sat outside of the office, waiting for the last person to finish with their one on one meeting with Michelle. These meetings would occur once a month, outside of the group meetings that they would have damn near every day. Her meeting was scheduled for 11 o'clock, like always, and she arrived a few minutes early. The door to Michelle's office eventually opened, and one of the people who was in the rehab program as well walked out. Priscilla recognized him, and knew that his name was Fitzgerald (everyone called him Fitz for short). He was a pretty cool dude, but Priscilla thought he literally looked like a corpse when they first arrived months back. She was happy to see that he was making progress, just like everyone else. Even herself.

"Priscilla!" Michelle said happily when she walked inside of the office. "Back again, are we?"

"Yeah." Priscilla said, sitting down in the lounge chair in front of her desk.

"How are you feeling today? You get some sleep?"

"Yeah, I slept pretty well."

"Great, let's get started then." Michelle said. Priscilla nodded, and she started up again. "It's been four months since you arrived and I gotta say, you are making amazing progress."

"Thank you." Priscilla said, smiling sweetly.

"You are a completely different person from the lost girl that walked in here months ago." Michelle continued. "How do you feel about your progress? You think you're doing well?"

"Yes…I feel better. I'm not craving it anymore like I used to…the smell of it, the sight of it…even remembering how I used to drugs makes me nauseous." Priscilla answered.

"That's great to hear! Do you think you'll be ready to go back home soon?"

Priscilla thought on it, not answering right away. It would be nice to see her family again…her friends. Everyone who's basically been supporting her. But going back home would leave open opportunity for Marcus to try and find her, and force her to come back with him. She couldn't face that devil again….she had a feeling that she wasn't ready for that. And she still felt like she had to work on herself….she wasn't close to 100% yet.

"I don't think I'm ready." She finally said.

"Oh? And why is that?" Michelle asked, clearly intrigued.

"I definitely think I'm doing well, but I'm not finished finding myself….I'm not finished finding the strength I need to face my demons back at home. Trust me, there's a lot of 'em…" She said.

"I believe you. Will you ever be ready to face your demons? Even if you're not 100% ready?" Michelle said.

"Eventually, I will have to face them. So I want to prepare myself for that moment. I don't want to go home and relapse into the darkness again." Priscilla said.

Michelle nodded her head slowly, before smiling at her. "You are a very smart girl, Priscilla Saretti. Your boyfriend is one lucky guy."

Priscilla blushed immediately and looked away, "M-Michelle, I don't have a boyfriend…"

"Oh yeah? So that handsome man who comes and sees you isn't your boyfriend?" Michelle said slyly.

"No…" Priscilla said.

"Could've fooled the hell out of me." Michelle smirked. "You two are cute together, you should make it happen….but I understand why you're hesitant when it comes to that, considering the situation between you and your ex."

Priscilla was still blushing over the fact that Michelle thought of Lamar as her boyfriend _. I mean, it would be nice…._ she started thinking, but quickly stopped herself. _Wait. Stop._

"You have a support system, which some people don't really have. You are blessed in more ways than one, Priscilla. Stop beating yourself up so much." Michelle said.

"Yeah…thank you…" She said softly.

She had been back in her room for about an hour, when her cell phone began ringing on the dresser. Priscilla walked over to it and picked it up, answering it after the third ring.

"Hello?"

"Sooo I was thinking…" Jupiter's voice started. "Did you wanna go out and explore San Fierro for the rest of the day, or stay inside and binge on that Power show you keep telling me about?"

Priscilla was caught off guard by that, and didn't understand what she meant. "Huh? What do you mean, J?" She asked.

"I meannn I'm definitely walking up to your room door as we speak."

"Get the fuck out. No you're not—" Priscilla started, but was stopped by the sound of rapid knocking on her door. She whipped her head towards it, squinting her eyes in confusion. _There's no fucking way….is there?_ She thought as she ran up to the door, opening it almost immediately. Jupiter was definitely standing in front of her door.

The two women squealed loudly, Jupiter jumping into her arms and giving her a big hug, to the point where she lifted Priscilla off of the ground slightly.

"Oh my god! I can't believe you're here!" Priscilla yelled happily as she continued to hug her.

"I know, I can't believe it either!" Jupiter said back.

"When did you get here?!"

"Does it matter, biotch?!" Jupiter squealed back. "I'm here, dammit!"

Priscilla hugged her again and felt herself almost breaking down into tears. In the four months that she had been at the rehab center, Jupiter was definitely consistent and stayed true to her word, always being that spiritual shoulder to cry on whenever Priscilla felt like giving up. She was definitely the true definition of a best friend. In return, Priscilla would be the same shoulder to cry on that Jupiter needed as well.

"Pris, is that you sounding like a dying emu?!" Tamara called out from her room, causing both of them to start laughing.

"Sorry Tammy, I just seen my friend for the first time in months!" Priscilla said back, before looking at Jupiter again. "Come in here!" She pulled Jupiter into her room and closed to the door behind her, locking it as well.

"Priscilla…did you draw all of these?" Jupiter asked as she looked at her drawings and paintings in awe.

"Yes ma'am. Do you like them?"

"Yasss girl! You're amazing….you should definitely take that talent of yours far."

"As should you." Priscilla grinned, referring to Jupiter's beautiful singing voice.

"Ehhh, whatever." Jupiter brushed it off, turning back around towards her. "This place is beautiful, seriously. It's so peaceful…definitely the opposite of LS."

"I hear that." Priscilla laughed. "So, are you gonna tell me how the hell you got here? Did you fly in?"

"No, I drove. F let me take his Feltzer." Jupiter said.

"Ooh, so you two are….?" Priscilla trailed off.

"Uh. I guess you can say that." Jupiter laughed nervously. "It kinda happened weird though…"

"Don't tell me, you've been giving him the kitty cat haven't you?" Priscilla said, wiggling her eyebrows. Jupiter's blushed reddened expression gave her all the answer she needed, and she began laughing loudly. "Don't be ashamed, ya'll are cute!"

"Speaking of cute…." Jupiter said, quickly trying to change the subject.

"No." Priscilla stopped her.

"You don't even know what I'm gonna say!"

"Yes I do. Nothing's happened between us yet."

"Yet?"

"Huh?"

"You just said yet." Jupiter said, grabbing Priscilla's hands excitedly. "Which means either you think something's gonna happen…or you want something to. Do it girl. Give in to the temptation." She then said.

"You are horrible." Priscilla groaned playfully. "You're telling a recovering addict to give in to temptation?"

"You know damn well I don't mean drugs…I mean if you wanna count _that_ is a drug, that's on you." Jupiter smirked. Priscilla began to think some very inappropriate things and blushed again, causing Jupiter to grin and give her another hug.

"You're so cute, Pris!" She said, before letting her go. "I'm so fucking proud of you…you know that right?"

"Thanks, boo." Priscilla said. "How are you…dealing with everything? You okay?"

"Eh." Jupiter shrugged.

"No Jupiter, tell me the truth. Is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine…if you don't count that fact that I can't tell Franklin why I really moved over here, and I keep having nightmares about what happened to me." Jupiter said. Priscilla felt a pang of sadness for her, understanding what she was going through. "Priscilla, I'm here for you. Not to talk about my problems…"

"But that's what we do right? We talk about our problems to each other…you're helping me so much. I want to help you too…" Priscilla said.

Jupiter smiled sweetly and Priscilla did too, before taking a deep breath.

"I was eight when it happened…" Priscilla then started once she exhaled.

Jupiter realized what she had just admitted to her, and her eyes became wide. "What?" She breathed out.

"Family friend…he had been around for a long time. He used to always come over and play with me when I had my toys out, and take me to the store…my mom really thought of him as family." Priscilla said slowly.

"Priscilla, you really don't have to tell me this…" Jupiter said.

"…Yes I do." Priscilla said back. "My cousin Raya and her mom was staying with us, after they moved out of her dad's house…she was ten at the time…the first time, I was confused, and didn't know what was going on. He just told me it was a way people played with each other. I felt weird and nasty, but I didn't say anything. The second time, it was me and Raya, and I knew something wasn't right. Raya threatened to tell her mom and he threatened both of us, saying he would kill us in our sleep."

"I was terrified, so again I ain't say nothing. The third time…Raya finally told her mom, who in turn told my mom. Next thing I know, my mom and Jax are barging into my bedroom, my mom on the verge of tears. She had just started getting really serious with Jax and I wasn't feeling him…I had it in my mind that he was trying to take my real dad's spot, which was unacceptable. But, I finally told them what he did to me and it was like Jax exploded." Priscilla grinned. "He beat the shit out of that man…literally. Had him shit on himself and everything."

"Oh my God, for real?!" Jupiter damn near yelled.

"Dead ass." Priscilla joked. "He beat him up pretty badly, and that's when my mind changed on him. We've been close since then…my point is, just like I'm not alone in my journey, you're not alone in your journey either, J. I'll always be here for you, boo."

Jupiter smiled, her eyes tearing up. "Priscilla…you're my best friend." She finally said. "Thank you boo."

"You're welcome, best friend." Priscilla smirked back.


End file.
